Can opening and pouring device



Jan 20, 1942 K. B1. VAN wol-:R11v SR., 'E1-AL -2,270,396

CAN OPENING AND POURING DEVICE Filed Dec. 5,1957

KENNETH Mw WOERT, JR. BY Wam Q7/l ATTORNEY.

Patented Jan. 20, 1942 CAN OPENING AND PGURING DEVICE Kenneth B. Van Woert, Sr., and Kenneth B. Van Woert, Jr., Oakland, Calif.; said Van Woert, Jr., assigner to said Van Weert, Sr.

Application December 3, 1937, Serial No. 177,934

4 Claims.

, The invention relates to devices for opening cans, particularly smaller type cans such as evaporated milk cans used for domestic purposes.

An object ofthe invention is to provide a device of the character described which may be simply and efflcaciouslyr used for opening small cans of the character above and which will provide a double purpose unit of both opening the can and serving as a pouring device for the can.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device of the character described which will be completely safe in its operation and prevent any contact of the hands of the user with the cutter elements of the device.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of the character above which will serve to puncture a can without danger of depositing any metal parts within the can, and which will also serve to protect the openings in the can against dust or other foreign material, and will also prevent congealing of ,the contents of the can in the openings so formed.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a device of the character above `which will form a complete enclosure for the can and provide an attractive piece of table ware.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which, with the foregoing, will be set forth in the following description of the preferred form of the invention which is illustrated in the drawing accompanying and forming part of the specification. It is to be understood, however, that variations in the showing made by the said drawing and description may be adopted within the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims.

Referring to said drawing:

Figure 1 is a perspective View of a can opening and pouring device constructed in accordance with the present invention.

"Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view of the device illustrated in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a perspective view showing the attachment of associated parts of the device.

Figure 4 is a plan view of the device.

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of the upper or head section, taken on line 5-5 of Figure 2 to agree with the drawing.

The can opening and pouring means of the present invention and as illustrated in the ac-V companying drawing, preferably consists of a pair of sections I and 8 which are arranged to t over and around a can 9 so as to provide a complete enclosure for the can. The section 1 is formed with a top wall II and a circumscribing side wall I2 extended therefrom and is arranged to engage in inverted position over the top wall I3 and to surround the side Wall I4 of the can. Carried by and depending from the wall II of the head section 1 are cutter members I6 and I1 which are adapted for forced penetration through the top wall I3 of the can to provide .an air inlet opening and a discharge opening for the contents respectively. 'I'he top wall II is preferably formed on its outer side with a pouring spout I8 which extends from an opening I9 formed in registration with the cutter I'l so as to facilitate pouring of the contents of the can. The cutter I6 is` preferably formed with1 an opening, here shown in the form of an open side 2l, for admission of air from the interior of the head member into the container to displace the contents discharged. If desired, although not required, a small air vent may be provided through the head section for admission of air.

In accordance with the present invention, we prefer to form both of the sections 1 and 8 from a molded plastic composition material such as is known in the trade under the trade names, Uynite, Plaskon, Bakelite" or the like. On the other hand, the cutter members I6 and I1 are preferably formed of metal and may be either molded with the head section or mounted therein after molding. Preferably, the cutter members are mounted in bosses 22 and 23 formed at opposite sides of the tcp and side walls of the head member, and as 4shown here, we prefer to form these cutter members from at steel or other metal stock bent to deiine a pair of angularly related side walls 24 and 2B and beveled or tapered. towards their lower ends to define sharp points 2l and 28. The use of such an angular sided arrangement in the case of cutter member i6 automatically provides the open side 2| above mentioned. Preferably, means are provided for spacing the base of the cutters, particularly the cutter I6, from the top of the can to permit ow of air into the can through the open side of the cutter. As here shown, an internal shoulder is provided around the head section slightly below the bosses, and is adapted to engage the top of the can, when the head section is pressed to a fully seated position on the can, to space the base of the cutters over the top of the can. In

the case of cutter Il, the boss 23 is preferably` provided with a depending side 3| which extends between the widened ends of the cutter sides 24 and 26 so as to dene a complete enclosure for the passage of the contents of the can into the opening I3 and the pouring spout I8.

A further advantage derived from the use of open sided cutters lies in the fact that the material in the top wall of the can is not completely removed at the opening but is merely cut along two sides and is b'ent inwardly on a third side and no material is removed which might fall into the interior of the can. In the case of cutter member I1, the side 3I is arranged to only bend the cut out portion of th'e can downwardly and has no cutting or shearing action on the can material. Preferably, one of the cutter members, as the cutter member I6 here shown, is slightly longer than the other so as to cause the successive penetration of the cutter members into the top of the can and thus decrease the amount of pressure which' need be applied to the head in eifecting the puncturing of the can.

As an important feature of the present arrangement, the cutters are tapered longitudinally sok as to cause a wedging of the cutters in the can top openings and a sealing of the cutter member I'I in the can opening. In this manner, leakage of the contents of the can into the interior of the device is prevented and the can is secured to the h'ead and is supported thereby independent of any support for the can in the base section 8 of the device. It will thus be seen that the head section in itself provides a complete can opening and pouring unit and may be used alone without the base section if desired. Accordingly, we prefer to make the overall interior heighth of the device slightly larger than the heighth of an average size can with which the device is arranged to be used, thus spacing the base of an average size can slightly over the bottom of the lower section and supporting the can exclusively from the head section. Such an arrangement enables the device to accommodate any cans of slightly greater than average heighth. This is desirable in View of the fact that manufacturers of products such as condensed milk, use slightly different sized cans.

It will be noted that the side wall I2 of the head section 'I of the device extends longitudinally to a point well below the cutting points of the cutter members and thus the cutter members are completely confined to within the interior of the head section. This feature is of considerable importance in preventing accidental cutting oi the hands of the user on the cutter elements and also is desirable in guiding th'e head section to a proper seated relation on the can top upon application of the section to the can. It will also be noted that while two openings are made in the can, one for the entry of air to the can, and the other for discharging the contents of the can, only one `of these openings is exposed to the atmosphere and thus much undesirable foreign matter in the air is prevented access to the interior of the can. Also preferably, the cutter members provide openings of sufficient size to prevent congealing in the openings of milk or other contents of the can.

In applying the device to a can, the head section 1 is placed over the top of the can so as to engage the depending circumferential side Wall I2 of the head section around the side walls of the can so as to properly center the head section on the can. The can, with the head section so reposed thereon, is then preferably positioned on a relatively solid support as a table or the like, and the head section pressed downwardly onto the top of the can to penetrate the cutters through the top Wall of the can. This latter operation may be easily accomplished by engaging the top wall II of the head section in the palm of the hand and it will be noted that the hands are in no way brought into direct engagement with the cutter members and the head section forms a safe and secure backing member for the cutter members. In this connection it will be noted that the use of the bosses 22 and 23 and th'e seating of the cutter members therein affords ample strength of material for preventing any accidental forcing of the cutter members through the top Wall II of the head section.

After the head section has been so positioned the latter, with the can depending therefrom, may be lowered into the bottom section 8, as illustrated in Figure 3, and secured in such section to provide a complete and attractive enclosure for the can. Any desired mode of c011- nection may be used between the sections I and 8 and as here shown, the bottom portion 32 of the side Wall I2 of the top section is reduced somewhat in thickness so as to telescope into the circumferential side wall 33 of the base section 8. Preferably, the base section is provided on one side thereof with a handle 34 which may if desired be molded integrally with the'base section so as to facilitate pouring of the contents from the device. Also in accordance with the present arrangement, the side Wall 33 at an opposite side from the handle 34, is provided with an outwardly extending pouring spout 36 which renders the base section 8 a self-contained cream pitcher when used Without the top section. In order to close the open top side 31 of the laterally extending spout 36 when the sections are arranged in assembled relation, the head section 'I is preferably formed with a longitudinal side protruberance 38 which extends to the bottom edge of the side wall I2 above the reduced portion 32, so as to seat the bottom edge 39 of the protuberance directly on the top side 31 of the pouring spout 36. Preferably, the protuberance 3B is formed as a downward continuation of the lateral extension used in forming the pouring spout I8, so that when the sections are assembled, as shown in Figure 1, the pouring spout I8 will be aligned with the pouring spout 36 and connected therewith by the protuberance 38 to give the appearance of a continuation of the pouring spout froinlthe bottom and the appearance that the contents are poured from the base pitcher rather than from an internal can.

We claim:

1. A can opening and pouring device comprising, a head member of molded plastic material and including an end wall and circumscribing side wall extended therefrom and adapted to fit over and around the top of a can, aboss formed on the inner side of said end and side walls and provided with a depending side, an open sided metal cutter mounted to said boss and engaging said side to dene a tubular enclosure and adapted for forcing through said can top, and pouring means at the upper end of said cutter for discharging the contents of said can.

2. A can opening and pouring device comprising, a head member having an end wall and a circumscribing side Wall extending therefrom and adapted for mounting over and around the top of a can, a base member including a bottom wall and a circumscribing side wall extending up- Wardly therefrom and detachably connected to said rst side wall, said base side Wall being provided with a handle on one side thereof and a laterally extending pouring spout on the other side thereof, and a cutter member depending from said head end Wall and adapted for penetration through said can top, said head member being formed with a transversely extending lpouring spout leading from the upper end of said cutter member, said head side Wall being provided with a longitudinal protuberance extending from said head spout to and overlying said base spout.

3. A can opening and pouring device comprising, a head member of molded plastic material and including an end wall and circumscribing side Wall extended therefrom and adapted to fit over and -around the top of a can, a plurality of bosses formed on the inner side of said end and side Walls, a plurality of metal cutter members extending from said bosses and V-shaped inl y transverse section and adapted to cut through said can top, and a projection of said plastic material extending from one of said bosses and engaging one of said cutter members to close the open side thereof and cooperating with said cutter member to bend away from said cutter member a strip of material severed by the cutter member from said can top to dene an opening through said can top, said head member having an opening adjacent said last named cutter member to form a pouring spout.

4. A can opening and pouring device comprisi i ing, a head member of molded plastic material and including a top Wall and a circumscribing depending side Wall and adapted to fit over and around the top of the can for movement longitudinally of the vertical can axis, said top Wall having an opening therethrough, a cutter member depending from said head member adjacent said opening and adapted for forced penetration through the top of said can, said cutter member 

